1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a visual telephone unit for transmitting a digital picture signal of an input picture or receiving a digital picture signal from another visual telephone unit. The present invention also relates to a visual telephone system having such a visual telephone unit.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A visual telephone conference system that allows the users at remote locations to have a conference is known. The visual telephone conference system has visual telephone conference units that are disposed at designated conference points. The designated conference points are connected using for example an ISDN telephone line network or the like so that a digital picture signal and an audio signal are transmitted and received therebetween.
In recent years, as mobile communication units such as cellular phone units are becoming common and technological innovations allow the transmission band to widen, a visual telephone conference may be held using a mobile visual conference unit that is a cellular phone unit having a small photographing unit such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device).
A visual telephone conference is performed using cellular phone units that are connected through an exchange and base stations so that a digital picture signal and an audio signal are transmitted and received therebetween.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of a visual telephone conference unit that is structured as a cellular phone unit. Referring to FIG. 1, a visual telephone conference unit 901 comprises a picture input unit 902, a microphone 903, a liquid crystal display 904, and a speaker 905. The picture input unit 902 inputs a picture. The microphone 903 collects a voice. The liquid crystal display 904 displays a picture of a digital picture signal received from another visual telephone unit. The speaker 905 outputs a voice.
When the user uses the visual telephone conference unit 901, he or she often holds it with his or her hand or places it on a desk. The visual telephone conference unit 901 is placed in such a manner that the frame of the picture input unit 902 is placed sideways or lengthways corresponding to the shape of a photographing object.
However, in the conventional visual telephone conference system, a picture frame that is input from the picture input unit 902 of the transmission side visual telephone conference unit is directly transmitted to the reception side visual telephone visual telephone conference unit, the orientation of the reception side visual telephone conference unit should be matched with the orientation of the transmission side visual telephone conference unit.
Thus, when the user has to place the visual telephone conference unit on a disk that is inclined, the visual telephone conference unit is inclined against a photographing object. As a result, the reception side visual telephone conference unit displays an inclined picture. In such a case, it is necessary to hold the reception side visual telephone conference unit in the inclined state. Thus, the operation of the reception side visual telephone conference unit is inconvenient.
The present invention is made from the above-described point of view. An object of the present invention is to provide a visual telephone conference system that does not need to adjust the orientation of a reception side visual telephone conference unit corresponding to the orientation of a transmission side visual telephone conference unit.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone unit, comprising: first inputting means for inputting a picture frame; second inputting means for inputting a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame by the compensation amount.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone unit, comprising: first inputting means for inputting a picture frame; second inputting means for inputting a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame; and rotating means for rotating said first inputting means by the compensation amount.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone unit, comprising: first inputting means for inputting a picture frame; detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame against an upright picture thereof; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame so that the rotation angle becomes zero.
In visual telephone unit according to the third aspect, said detecting means may designate the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting both the eyes and the mouth of a face in a recognized picture and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
The visual telephone unit according to the third aspect may further comprise: a head set having two speaker portions and a microphone portion each having a light source, wherein said detecting means designates the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting the light sources in the picture frame and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone unit, comprising: receiving means for receiving a picture frame; inputting means for inputting a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame by the compensation amount.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone unit, comprising: receiving means for receiving a picture frame; detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame against an upright picture thereof; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame so that the rotation angle becomes zero.
In the visual telephone unit according to the fifth aspect, said detecting means may designate the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting both the eyes and the mouth of a face in a recognized picture and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
The visual telephone unit according to the fifth aspect may further comprise: a head set having two speaker portions and a microphone portion each having a light source, wherein said detecting means designates the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting the light sources in the picture frame and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone system having a first visual telephone unit and a second visual telephone unit; wherein the first visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting a picture frame; receiving means for receiving a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame from the second visual telephone unit; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame by the compensation amount, and wherein the second visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting the compensation amount; and transmitting means for transmitting the compensation amount to the first visual telephone unit.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone system having a first visual telephone unit and a second visual telephone unit; wherein the first visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting a picture frame; receiving means for receiving a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame from the second visual telephone unit; and rotating means for rotating said inputting means by the compensation amount, and wherein the second visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting the compensation amount; and transmitting means for transmitting the compensation amount to the first visual telephone unit.
According to a eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone system having a first visual telephone unit and a second visual telephone unit; wherein the first visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting a picture frame; receiving means for receiving a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame against an upright picture thereof from the second visual telephone unit; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame so that the rotation angle becomes zero, and wherein the second visual telephone unit comprises: detecting means for detecting the rotation angle; and transmitting means for transmitting the rotation angle to the first visual telephone unit.
In the visual telephone system according to the eighth aspect, said detecting means may designate the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting both the eyes and the mouth of a face in a recognized picture and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
The visual telephone system according to the eighth aspect may further comprise: a head set having two speaker portions and a microphone portion each having a light source, wherein said detecting means designates the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting the light sources in the picture frame and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone system having a first visual telephone unit and a second visual telephone unit; wherein the first visual telephone unit comprises: first inputting means for inputting a picture frame; second inputting means for inputting a compensation amount of a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame; and transmitting means for transmitting the compensation amount to the second visual telephone unit, and wherein the second visual telephone unit comprises: receiving means for receiving the compensation amount from the first visual telephone unit; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame by the compensation amount.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a visual telephone system having a first visual telephone unit and a second visual telephone unit; wherein the first visual telephone unit comprises: inputting means for inputting a picture frame; detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of the picture frame around a perpendicular line that passes through the picture frame against an upright picture thereof; and transmitting means for transmitting the rotation angle to the second visual telephone unit, and wherein the second television unit comprises: receiving means for receiving the rotation angle from the first visual telephone unit; and rotating means for rotating the picture frame so that the rotation angle becomes zero.
In the visual telephone system according to the tenth aspect, detecting means may designate the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting both the eyes and the mouth of a face of a recognized picture and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
The visual telephone system according to the tenth aspect may further comprise: a head set having two speaker portions and a microphone portion each having a light source, wherein said detecting means designates the angle made by the base of an inverse isosceles triangle formed by connecting the light sources of the picture frame and the horizontal line as the rotation angle.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent in light of the following detailed description of a best mode embodiment thereof, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.